The past few years have been excellent for the world of E-Commerce, the industry has experienced significant growth. The majority of the increase in E-Commerce’s popularity was bought on due to Coronavirus lockdowns, which made shopping at a brick and mortar store less accessible.
But now Coronavirus lockdowns are in the rear view mirror, E-Commerce retailers will have to adapt to keep customers from returning to the high street, so we spoke to Buzz Carter SEO manager for online homeware site DotcomBlinds.com to get some insight into how E-Commerce will change over the next 12 months.
Delivery Options Become More Important
Thanks to recent industrial action from Royal Mail workers and the poor reputation of courier services such as Evri and Yodel, customers will have a bigger focus on delivery options than ever before. Online shoppers want fast and reliable delivery options and delivery options may be a deal breaker for customers not happy with the performance of certain delivery brands.
Retail Sites More Focused On Smart Phones
Mobile has reigned supreme in the E-Commerce space for a while, with around 60% of E-Commerce orders coming from mobile devices according to Statista. But it has taken a while for E-Commerce businesses to cotton onto this fact, with many sites still focused on desktop traffic, in 2023 you can expect to see many online retailers launch new websites with a renewed focus on mobile-friendliness.
Diversification Of Content Formats
Businesses are always looking for the best way to connect with their customers and E-Commerce businesses are uniquely placed to effectively communicate with customers over a wide range of formats. Gone are the days when all you needed was a good copywriter, in 2023 branded TikToks, YouTube tutorials and explainers and review videos will become as important as the written content on your website.
Increased Importance Of Customer Service
Before E-Commerce was as mainstream as it currently is, you could easily get customers by just having a retail website, but in 2023 every good business has a website of their own. So, with many websites looking for their USP many will focus on customer service as a selling point to set themselves apart from the competition, retain more customers and become more approachable for new customers.
More Variety In Payment Options
While previously your website would be considered amazing for just having an option to pay via PayPal, that’s no longer the case thanks to all the new payment processing companies that have popped up recently, such as: Klarna, Google Pay and Apple Pay. All payment processors have their own pros and cons, as well as people who trust them, by limiting the amount of payment processors you use on your site, you could be turning away customers who can’t use their preferred payment method.
Shopping Directly From Social Media
Social media has been a game changer in the world of E-Commerce, allowing businesses to connect with their audience and advertise to consumers directly. Recently, social medias like Instagram have taken this up to a new level, offering services where you can advertise and sell your products directly through their apps, in 2023 this will be widely adopted as retailers jostle to have the easiest purchasing experience possible.
